Back in 2018, a lot of good things happened. I published my first interactive fiction novel. I participated in (and won) NaNoWriMo for the first time in almost a decade and got to spend a month writing about magic and cats. I even got on a roughly regular posting schedule on my blog.

I began 2019 with high hopes and an unprecedented amount of confidence. This is the year! I thought. I’m going to do ALL the things!

Obviously, that hasn’t quite worked out. I haven’t posted since December. I’m a little off-schedule with my next personal project, a novel. And that NaNoWriMo draft may never see the light of day; I haven’t decided yet.

But here’s the difference between 2019 and so many years that have come before: I’m still feeling pretty good about everything. Last year was pretty good. This year is going to be even better.

Looking Back: 2018

Not everything was sunshine and roses last year, of course. There’s always bad with the good. But the upshot of 2018 was that I finally got stuff done. Not a poem here, a fragment of a draft there. Stuff was written, stuff was edited, and stuff was published. My dream technically came true. I can now officially call myself an author of a (digital) novel. Last year I:

Published The Harbinger’s Head through Hosted Games
Completed a 50,000+ word fantasy novel draft for NaNoWriMo
Shared 19 posts on this blog (and wrote several more)
Survived canoeing through alligator-infested waters for two days
Saw Stars on Ice and the Moscow Ballet perform The Nutcracker live
Went to Disney World! Many times!

And had many other adventures besides. It was a heck of a year. It reminded me what I was capable of–not just what I could handle, but what I could create. Which brings us to…

Looking Ahead: 2019

I’ve learned by now (or should have) that life rarely goes according to plan. Nonetheless, some things I plan/hope to accomplish this year include:

NaNoRenO 2019! My dear friend OddLazdo (of Saucy Suitors fame) and I are collaborating for a visual novel game jam to create what will be my first VN ever. I’m so excited to be working with her and to cross off yet another big item off my bucket list! NaNo started YESTERDAY and we’re already off to a rollicking good start. Wish us luck!
My first (non-interactive) novel! I’ve been working on this beast for some time. I started researching/drafting years ago and then lost track of… well, a lot of things. Last year I revisited this project and, after taking it apart, began slowly putting the pieces back together as I improved them one by one. My goal is to, at the very least, have a complete rough draft by the end of this year.
More blog posts! Yes, I’ve been lax. I think I just needed some time to recharge after the excitement of 2018. But ideally I will be back on a regular schedule starting very soon–perhaps by April.
Other stuff? Probably! For one thing, I’d like to get this site cleaned up at some point, maybe do another design revamp… we’ll see what cards I get dealt this year.

And there you have it. My very late 2019 update. An extremely belated Happy New Year (and Happy Valentine’s Day!) to you all. See you on the other side of NaNoReNo!